Ministry of Minority Affairs
Union Minority Affairs Minister Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi announces Haj 2022
Online application process for Haj 2022 starts today 1st November; last date 31st Jan 2022
Indian Haj pilgrims to go ‘Vocal for Local’; indigenous items to be given to pilgrims at embarkation points in India
Selection process of Haj pilgrims based on full COVID-19 vaccination
Digital Health Card, “E-MASIHA” for all Haj pilgrims: Union Minister Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi
Mumbai, 1st Nov, 2021
Online application process for Haj 2022 starts today, 1st November, 2021. This has been announced by the Union Minister for Minority Affairs Shri Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi, at Haj House in Mumbai today. The Minister said that Haj 2022 is being held with significant reforms and enhanced facilities.
Announcing the pilgrimage, the Minister said: “The entire Haj process will be 100 percent online. People can apply online and also through ‘Haj Mobile App’, equipped with modern facilities. The last date of applying for Haj 2022 is 31st January, 2022. The App has been upgraded with the tagline ‘Haj App In Your Hand’; it contains several new features which include frequently asked questions, information to fill up the application form and videos giving information to applicants to fill up the form in a very simple manner.”
Vocal for Local
The Minister said that this time, Indian Haj pilgrims will promote "Vocal for Local'', going to Haj with indigenous products. Earlier, Haj pilgrims used to buy bed sheets, pillows, towels, umbrellas and other items in Saudi Arabia in foreign currency. This time, most of these indigenous goods will be bought in India in Indian currency. While these goods will be available in India at about 50 percent lower prices in comparison to Saudi Arabia, it will also encourage “Swadeshi” and "Vocal for Local". All these items will be given to Haj pilgrims at their respective embarkation points in India.
Shri Naqvi said that for decades, Haj pilgrims used to buy all these items in Saudi Arabia in foreign currency. Interestingly, most of these items were "Made in India", which various companies used to buy from India and sell to Haj pilgrims in Saudi Arabia at double or even triple the price. Shri Naqvi said that according to an estimate, this arrangement will save crores of rupees to Indian Haj pilgrims. India sends 2 lakh Haj pilgrims every year.
Selection Based on Complete COVID-19 Vaccination
Shri Naqvi said that the selection process of Haj pilgrims will be done according to complete vaccination with both the doses and guidelines and criteria to be decided by Indian and Saudi Arabia Governments, keeping in view COVID-19 protocols during the time of Haj 2022.
Shri Naqvi said that the entire Haj 2022 process has been chalked out after deliberations among Ministry of Minority Affairs, Ministry of Health, Ministry of External Affairs, Ministry of Civil Aviation, Haj Committee of India, Indian Embassy in Saudi Arabia and India’s Consul General in Jeddah and other agencies keeping in view all aspects of the pandemic challenges.
10 Embarkation Points for Haj 2022
Shri Naqvi said that embarkation points for Haj 2022 have been reduced from 21 to 10. For Haj 2022, the 10 embarkation points are Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, Ahmedabad, Hyderabad, Bengaluru, Lucknow, Cochin, Guwahati, and Srinagar.
- Delhi embarkation point will cover Delhi, Punjab, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Chandigarh, Uttarakhand, Rajasthan, western districts of Uttar Pradesh
- Mumbai will cover Maharashtra, Goa, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Daman & Diu, Dadra & Nagar Haveli
- Kolkata will cover West Bengal, Odisha, Tripura, Jharkhand and Bihar
- Ahmedabad will cover entire Gujarat
- Bengaluru will cover entire Karnataka and Chittoor district of Andhra Pradesh
- Hyderabad will cover Andhra Pradesh and Telangana
- Lucknow will cover all parts of Uttar Pradesh except western parts
- Cochin will cover Kerala, Lakshadweep, Puducherry, Tamil Nadu and Andaman & Nicobar
- Guwahati will cover Assam, Meghalaya, Manipur, Arunachal Pradesh, Sikkim and Nagaland
- Srinagar will cover Jammu-Kashmir, Leh-Ladakh-Kargil
E-MASIHA for all pilgrims
Shri Naqvi said that Digital Health Card, “E-MASIHA” health facility and “E-luggage pre-tagging”, providing all information regarding accommodation/transportation in Makkah-Madinah, will be provided to all the Haj pilgrims.
Shri Naqvi said that more than 3000 women had applied for Haj 2020 and 2021 under without “Mehram”  category. Their applications will be eligible for Haj 2022 also if they want to go to perform Haj 2022. Other women can also apply for Haj 2022 under without “Mehram” category. All the women under without “Mehram” category will be exempted from the lottery system.
Royal Vice Consul General of Saudi Arabia in Mumbai, H.E. Mohammad Abdul Karim Al-Enazi; Joint Secretary, Union Minority Affairs Ministry, Smt. Nigar Fatima; Haj Committee of India CEO Mohammad Yakoob Shekha and other senior officials were present on the occasion.
Haj Mobile App can be downloaded here: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.hajapp.hcoi
Haj related services provided by Govt. of Saudi Arabia can be accessed at: https://www.haj.gov.sa/en/InternalPages/Details/10234